Give top priority to consolidating and strengthening Vietnam-Laos relations

President Luong Cuong and Chairman of the Lao National Assembly reaffirmed that they always give top priority to consolidating and enhancing the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos.

President Luong Cuong meets with Lao National Assembly Chairman Saysomphone Phomvihane. (Photo: Lam Khanh/VNA)

According to the special correspondent of VNA, within the framework of the State visit to the Lao People's Democratic Republic, on the morning of April 25, at the National Assembly House, President Luong Cuong met with Chairman of the Lao National Assembly Saysomphone Phomvihane.

Lao National Assembly Chairman Saysomphone Phomvihane warmly welcomed President Luong Cuong on his first state visit to Laos, demonstrating the friendship and brotherhood of the Party, State and people of Vietnam.

On this occasion, the Chairman of the Lao National Assembly conveyed his warmest regards to Chairman of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man and other senior leaders of Vietnam; thanked the Party, State and people of Vietnam for always giving the Party, State and people of Laos their sincere feelings and valuable support in the cause of national construction and development. The Chairman of the National Assembly congratulated Vietnam on its political, economic and diplomatic achievements, and on its increasingly high role and position in the region and the world.

President Luong Cuong expressed his pleasure in visiting the brotherly country of Laos on the occasion of the Lao New Year Bunpimay; the President conveyed his best wishes to National Assembly Chairman Saysomphone Phomvihane and other senior Lao leaders.

The President expressed his delight at seeing Laos achieving more and more important development achievements, contributing to economic stability, inflation control, improving people's lives, and enhancing Laos' international position, including the success of its Chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2024 and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) in 2024; he believed that Laos would successfully implement the Resolution of the 11th Party Congress and the 9th Five-Year Socio-Economic Development Plan, prepare for and successfully organize Party Congresses at all levels and the 12th Congress of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party.

President Luong Cuong was moved by the friendship that the Lao Party, State and people have always had for Vietnam, which has become increasingly warm and intimate; he highly appreciated the effective and close cooperation between the two countries' National Assemblies in recent times, which has actively contributed to promoting the great Vietnam-Laos relationship.

The President shared his experience in Vietnam's drastic implementation of apparatus reform, amendments to the Constitution and laws to create a more favorable legal corridor for the upcoming development period, aiming to turn Vietnam into an upper-middle-income developing country by 2030 and a high-income developed country by 2045.

The President emphasized that Vietnam and Laos share many similarities, the same aspirations, and the development of one country is always linked to the development of the other.

Lao National Assembly Chairman Saysomphone Phomvihane thanked President Luong Cuong for his warm and close sharing about the special cooperation relationship between Laos and Vietnam. The Party, State and people of Vietnam have always stood shoulder to shoulder with the Party, State and people of Laos from the period of fighting for national independence in the past to the cause of national construction and development today. Many important infrastructure projects of Laos have had the participation and support of Vietnam, including the Lao National Assembly building which has now become a new symbolic building in the capital Vientiane.

The Lao National Assembly Chairman expressed his highest support for Vietnam's development guidelines and orientations, affirming that the legislative bodies of the two countries will continue to closely coordinate, maintain regular exchanges and contacts between the two National Assemblies and between the National Assembly Committees of the two countries, to share experiences in reform and streamlining the apparatus, and be determined to build a modern and flexible political system for the common interests of the people of the two countries.

National Assembly Chairman Saysomphone Phomvihane affirmed to continue to closely direct and promote cooperation between the National Assembly in particular and the two countries in general, together with the Vietnamese National Assembly to promote a high sense of responsibility, contributing to the effective implementation of high-level agreements and cooperation agreements between the two countries.

President Luong Cuong with members of the Lao National Assembly delegation. (Photo: Lam Khanh/VNA)

The two leaders reaffirmed that they always attach importance to and give the highest priority to consolidating and enhancing the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos, considering it a priceless asset, a vital factor for the revolutionary cause of each country; agreed to continue to maintain regular delegation exchanges and high-level contacts; actively implement high-level agreements, including the Cooperation Agreement between the two National Assemblies; continue to strengthen exchange activities and share experiences in building and perfecting institutions and legal systems; remove difficulties and obstacles in institutions/mechanisms, creating a favorable legal corridor for businesses and localities of the two countries to implement cooperation in a sustainable and mutually beneficial direction.

The two leaders also appreciated that both sides are actively researching, compiling and publishing the book “ 50 years of relations between the Vietnamese National Assembly and the Lao National Assembly ”; believing that the book will contribute to widely disseminating and raising awareness of the people of the two countries about the close Vietnam-Laos relationship.

The two sides agreed to strengthen solidarity, continue to closely coordinate and support each other at regional and international forums, consult and coordinate to support positions on international and regional issues in line with the interests and concerns of each country, in harmony with the common stance of ASEAN, especially at AIPA, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF), and the Francophone Parliamentary Union (APF)./.

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